John 4:34

4:34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of the one who sent me ¹  and to complete ²  his work. ³ 

Job 23:12

23:12 I have not departed from the commands of his lips;

I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my allotted portion. ⁴ 

Psalms 63:5

63:5 As if with choice meat ⁵  you satisfy my soul. ⁶ 

My mouth joyfully praises you, ⁷ 

Psalms 119:103

119:103 Your words are sweeter

in my mouth than honey! ⁸ 

Proverbs 18:20

18:20 From the fruit of a person’s mouth ⁹  his stomach is satisfied, ¹⁰ 

with the product of his lips is he satisfied.

Isaiah 53:11

53:11 Having suffered, he will reflect on his work,

he will be satisfied when he understands what he has done. ¹¹ 

“My servant ¹²  will acquit many, ¹³ 

for he carried their sins. ¹⁴ 

Jeremiah 15:16

15:16 As your words came to me I drank them in, ¹⁵ 

and they filled my heart with joy and happiness

because I belong to you. ¹⁶ 

Acts 20:35

20:35 By all these things, ¹⁷  I have shown you that by working in this way we must help ¹⁸  the weak, ¹⁹  and remember the words of the Lord Jesus that he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” ²⁰ 

[4:34]  ¹ sn The one who sent me refers to the Father.

[4:34]  ² tn Or “to accomplish.”

[4:34]  ³ tn The substantival ἵνα (Jina) clause has been translated as an English infinitive clause.

[23:12]  ⁴ tc The form in the MT (מֵחֻקִּי, mekhuqqi) means “more than my portion” or “more than my law.” An expanded meaning results in “more than my necessary food” (see Ps 119:11; cf. KJV, NASB, ESV). HALOT 346 s.v. חֹק 1 indicates that חֹק (khoq) has the meaning of “portion” and is here a reference to “what is appointed for me.” The LXX and the Latin versions, along with many commentators, have בְּחֵקִי (bÿkheqi, “in my bosom”).

[63:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “like fat and fatness.”

[63:5]  ⁶ tn Or “me.”

[63:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “and [with] lips of joy my mouth praises.”

[119:103]  ⁸ tn Heb “How smooth they are to my palate, your word, more than honey to my mouth.” A few medieval Hebrew mss, as well as several other ancient witnesses, read the plural “your words,” which can then be understood as the subject of the plural verb “they are smooth.”

[18:20]  ⁹ sn Two images are used in this proverb: the fruit of the mouth and the harvest of the lips. They are synonymous; the first is applied to the orchard and the second to the field. The “mouth” and the “lips” are metonymies of cause, and so both lines are speaking about speech that is productive.

[18:20]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “his midst.” This is rendered “his stomach” because of the use of שָׂבַע (sava’, “to be satisfied; to be sated; to be filled”), which is usually used with food (cf. KJV, ASV “belly”).

[53:11]  ¹¹ tn Heb “he will be satisfied by his knowledge,” i.e., “when he knows.” The preposition is understood as temporal and the suffix as a subjective genitive. Some take בְּדַעְתּוֹ (bÿda’to, “by his knowledge”) with what follows and translate “by knowledge of him,” understanding the preposition as instrumental and the suffix as objective.

[53:11]  ¹² sn The song ends as it began (cf. 52:13-15), with the Lord announcing the servant’s vindication and exaltation.

[53:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “he will acquit, a righteous one, my servant, many.” צַדִּיק (tsadiq) may refer to the servant, but more likely it is dittographic (note the preceding verb יַצְדִּיק, yatsdiq). The precise meaning of the verb (the Hiphil of צָדַק, tsadaq) is debated. Elsewhere the Hiphil is used at least six times in the sense of “make righteous” in a legal sense, i.e., “pronounce innocent, acquit” (see Exod 23:7; Deut 25:1; 1 Kgs 8:32 = 2 Chr 6:23; Prov 17:15; Isa 5:23). It can also mean “render justice” (as a royal function, see 2 Sam 15:4; Ps 82:3), “concede” (Job 27:5), “vindicate” (Isa 50:8), and “lead to righteousness” (by teaching and example, Dan 12:3). The preceding context and the next line suggest a legal sense here. Because of his willingness to carry the people’s sins, the servant is able to “acquit” them.

[53:11]  ¹⁴ tn The circumstantial clause (note the vav [ו] + object + subject + verb pattern) is understood as causal here. The prefixed verb form is either a preterite or an imperfect used in a customary manner.

[15:16]  ¹⁵ sn Heb “Your words were found and I ate them.” This along with Ezek 2:8–3:3 is a poetic picture of inspiration. The prophet accepted them, assimilated them, and made them such a part of himself that he spoke with complete assurance what he knew were God’s words.

[15:16]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “Your name is called upon me.”

[20:35]  ¹⁷ sn The expression By all these things means “In everything I did.”

[20:35]  ¹⁸ tn Or “must assist.”

[20:35]  ¹⁹ tn Or “the sick.” See Eph 4:28.

[20:35]  ²⁰ sn The saying is similar to Matt 10:8. Service and generosity should be abundant. Interestingly, these exact words are not found in the gospels. Paul must have known of this saying from some other source.